JNCC Offshore Survey Blog

As part of our statutory responsibility to recommend Marine
Protected Areas (MPAs) in UK offshore waters (beyond 12 nautical
miles), JNCC gathers information to help support these
recommendations; either by searching and retrieving existing
information, or through collaborative or commissioned survey. Once
these MPAs have been identified, further information gathered
through survey may be required to deliver management measures and
conservation advice. JNCC survey work takes place throughout
the year and our staff who join the research vessels will
blog throughout the survey sharing information and images from
the survey.

JNCC Offshore Survey blog

Blowing away those end of survey blues

After beating a retreat from another storm that was blowing across the exposed North Atlantic, we busied ourselves with working at some more sheltered contingency stations East of the Shetland Islands. It seems that you can’t hide forever though, and as the winds picked up, we sought more shelter inshore and sat out a bumpy (and for many of us, sleepless) night.

The following morning, while the southerly gales had died down, the residual swell meant slow progress as we steamed south.

It was fair to say that at this point, team morale was at a low ebb. The rough seas, the unsettled stomachs and the long shifts had taken their toll. But as a group of us were on the bridge after lunch looking at a group of pelagic mackerel trawlers, a cry rang out which lifted everyone’s spirits……"ORCA!"

A bull killer whale came across our bow while a much larger group crossed our wake. They were leaping clear of the water, as they made a beeline for the trawlers, probably excited at the thought of a nice meal awaiting them as the trawlers hauled their nets packed with fish.

It’s amazing how just a fleeting glimpse of some amazing cetaceans can really lift the spirits of the team. For many, it had been their first Orca sighting ever, and for others, their first in UK waters. We carried on the steam to our next survey location with a little spring in our steps, as we got on with our work.

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